The Billionaire's Assistant

Chapter 8

"It's the 55th floor, the top floor," bragged Courtney nonsensically as if her office were there. "I go up there pretty often," she said with obvious pride. "I'm probably the employee that goes up there the most honestly," she continued with feigned nonchalance. "He just likes to see me a lot."

Kat rolled her eyes again as they boarded the elevator and Courtney pressed the button for 55. "He wanted to promote me," Courntey confides, her voice dropping in pitch as if simply approaching his floor meant he could hear their conversation. "So that's the only reason why I don't work as his assistant anymore, he promoted me for my career's sake." Her eyes went dreamy for a moment. "He's really thoughtful. He cares a lot."

Kat nodded absentmindedly, half listening to the woman as she sang the CEO's praises.

"Oh, and Katherine," Courtney says as the elevator dings, announcing their arrival. "Only I can call him Jove. For you, it's Mr. Tillibenton." Kat nodded again, the realization setting upon her that she was potentially about to meet the man who might become her boss, the man who would give her access to the information she needed to know, the man who she would take down. Her heartbeat grew louder in her ears as she and Courtney stepped into another modernly decorated lobby, this one halfway between the enormous size of the first and the comparatively diminutive size of the second. There was a long, slim silver desk in the same orientation, but no typing woman graced the slim backed silver chair and a heavy silence blanketed the space. She would be the one to fill the chair, she'd be the rude typing woman, she realizes distractedly.

Courtney was already taking large strides toward the only door in the room, a ceiling height, solid oak door with an enormous, vertical handle plated in gold. Kat hurried behind her, stopping short when Courtney paused abruptly in front of her. Courtney, the confidence and bravo of the office suddenly leached away as displayed by her posture, took a deep breath and knocked on the oversized door meekly, trepidation evident in the lilt of her mouth. They waited for a beat, and then another. Kat held her breath to match the room's silence. Nor the lobby, or anything behind the door made a peep, as if the whole floor was in wait. After a silence quickly encroaching upon the uncomfortable, Coutrney turned to her, her eyes wide.

"Should I knock again?" she whispered pleadingly. Kat crinkled her nose in confusion at the inquiry, both baffled and tickled at the woman's sudden meekness. Courtney continued to stare at her, clearly expecting an answer, and Kat shrugged helplessly, lifting her palms upwards in a universal sign of uncertainty. She couldn't believe that this suddenly desperate woman was genuinely asking her for what Kat could only assume at this point to be relationship advice while actively conducting an interview. This is why the world's the way it is, she thought, still feeling Courtney's eyes boring into her pleadingly. It's because billionaires create international corporations where their biggest concern is an assistant they wanna sleep with. The thought reminded her of what Andy would say and she stood up straighter, suddenly feeling the energy of Andy's courage.

"Knock again," she whispered back, and Courtney nodded decisively, lifting her hand. Before she had the chance to tap out another two timid knocks the door swung suddenly open with a force disproportionatal to its size, startling both of them. Kat took a step backwards, momentarily unsure, then froze in place, her jaw falling lighty open. It was Mr. Tillibenton. Jove. She'd seen pictures of him before, she'd researched him painstakingly before even applying, but in person the sight of him made her breath hitch in her chest. She'd known he was conventionally handsome, he was as notorious of a billionaire playboy as Bruce Wayne, but Kat swore she felt time stop as she struggled to take him all in.

He was so much taller than he seemed in pictures, so much larger, more solid, and he exuded a wild, hypnotically compelling energy that left her unable to tear her eyes from his face. His eyes were a deep, brooding aqua, even their disinterested gaze intense enough to make her face feel hot. Loose, dark brown curls framed his face, longer than Kat had expected but slicked back slightly with some sort of gel. She felt like she could see the indentations where his fingers had brushed it though, could picture him running his hands through his hair with his head tipped backward, and she flushed further at the thought, mortified with herself for where her mind had immediately gone. He had thick, bushy eyebrows that were furrowed as he looked down at them, and his eyebrows, eyelashes, and full, closely trimmed beard were all the same deep chestnut shade of his hair. A statue, Kat found herself thinking. He looks like a living statue. The comparison was apt, and his chiseled jaw, Grecian nose, and high, distinct cheekbones seemed too well crafted to be anything but intentional, anything but art. He was near dizzyingly tall and she had to look up just to see his face, the imposing nature of his presence only exacerbated by his height and stature. He wore a gray three piece suit, its arms stretched slightly by the bugle of muscle visible at each bicep, and the perfectly tailored garb emphasized just how built he truly was, another thing that had failed to come across in Kat's preparatory study. His tanned, golden skin seemed to literally glow, and Kat blinked, certain she was imagining it. As he looked down at the two silent women at the door a vaguely bored expression with a nearly imperceptible flash of interest crossed his face and he sighed lightly, without reproach.

"Can I help you?" he asked with a bemused smirk.

"I," Courtney began, evidently equally mesmerized. "It's um." It's the interview. For your assistant. We're hiring her, your assistant. I am, I'm hiring her." She rambled.

"Courtney," he chided gently, his deep voice rumbling with laughter. "What did I tell you about when you should come see me?"

Courtney looked down, scolded. "When it's important," she mumbled.

"And is this important?" he questioned in the same playful tone, the second hand embarrassment enough to make Kat want to sink into the floor.

Courtney opened her mouth then closed it, eyes still locked on the pointed toes of her high heeled shoes. "Well I just thought it would be good for you to meet her," she mumbled, "since she might be..."

"Might be?" the imposing man asked, cutting her off with a light furrow of his brow. "So you came to my office, interrupted me, got me out here, brought someone to meet me, and she might be my assistant?" Despite his critical words his tone was far more neutral, teasing, almost coy.

"No," rushed Courtney quickly. "No, she is, she is your assistant, I hired her already, I was just bringing her to meet you." Kat turned and shot her a look, her shock the only thing that distracted her long enough to peel her eyes from Jove's face.

"I was just being proactive," Courtney continued, "It's done, everything is done."

"So the paperwork is done?" Jove asked with a face that would've mimicked sternness if it weren't for the glint behind his eye. "Payroll is set, she's in the system?"

"Of course," said Courtney, Kat continuing to stare at her with her mouth still slightly ajar. "Of course, I just have to," her eyes flick to Kat, her face a mask of panic. "I just have to get her badge. That's where we're going next, we're just gonna go get her badge."

Courtney grips Kat's arm a bit too tightly and begins to pull her towards the door. "We're going to go."

Kat felt herself being tugged along, still struggling to orient her mind after the system malfunction first seeing Jove had caused, when Courtney suddenly stopped short, freezing as if she'd walked face first into a plate of glass. Jove had reached out and placed a few fingers on Courtney's retreating arm as a signal to wait, and it was clear the woman was overwhelmed at the touch.

"Coutrney," he said in an admonishing tone as if he'd told her the same thing many times before. "If you brought her to meet me, why is she leaving?"

Realizing that she was the 'she' in question Kat straightened up, mind racing as she tried to focus. He still had yet to send more than a glance her way, and Kat noted with horror a needling sense of dejection. Courtney had been right, of course she'd been right, he clearly paid no mind to girls like her. Why would Courtney, so obviously ruinously in love with the man, hire anyone who would serve as potential competition? She knew him, she knew his tastes, and Kat wasn't it. All the better, she thought, steeling her mind as she brushed away the disappointment she felt embarrassed to be experiencing. Courtney was still trying to answer his question, and he let her stammer wordless for another moment before silencing her with a more pronounced smirk.

"She's mine, isn't she? My assistant," said Jove instructionaly as if he was walking Courtney through a simple math problem. "She's already hired, she's already here. So she can start now. Otherwise, you've wasted my time. Right?"

Courtney nodded, a flush rising in her cheeks. "And you wouldn't waste my time," he tells her decisively. "So." he looked at her expectantly and she peered back from underneath her thick lashes, hopeful.

"Yes?" She nearly squeaked.

"You said you have to go get her badge," Jove instructed. "Go ahead."

She nodded. "I'll bring it right back up."

"She'll come down for it," he dismisses with a wave of his hand.

Courtney's face fell and she turned sharply, heels clicking quickly as she hurried back to the elevators. Kat watched her back as she left, heart quickening anew as she realized what the sudden turn of events meant. She was here, alone, with Mr. Tillibenton. She knows she should be celebrating, internally jumping for joy at the luck that had landed her this opportunity, this unbelievable job, but instead she was stock still, too afraid to turn her head and set her eyes on him again.